When We Fall
by cora-stacy
Summary: Oliver needs to rebuild his life. Good things he has some really good friends to help him. SPOILERS to end of season 2. Eventual Olicity. No Laurel Bashing.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hi everyone! I've been on a bit of a hiatus due to getting some real life writing work, but I'm hoping summer hiatus will lead to more fic time. I'm still working on Permanent Stain as well. I haven't forgotten I just wanted to see what season 2 did to that pairing.

This is NOT a sequel to Sharp Arrows. I can't seem to get that working in my brain. This one takes place in the canon universe after the end of season two so big giant SPOILER ALERT! do not read until you are done all of season 2

Disclaimer: all this belongs to CW and DC

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Felicity was tapping away at the keyboard faster than she could think. She had the police scanner going in one ear and her phone link to the team going in the other.

" The van is traveling east down 45th towards the docks." She pulled up the map showing everyones current positions. " Dig go north then take the eastbound underpass. You and Roy can cut them off at the port entrance."

"On it." She heard an engine rev as the dot representing her friends began to move faster in parallel to the target on the screen. A third green dot began to move into view behind the escaping criminals. She slid her chair across to another computer and inputted the code to manipulate the stoplights for minimal interference.

"Shouldn't have to worry about cross traffic for at least five minutes Oliver."

" I'll be done in three." Oliver sped up on his motorcycle until he was in range of the white cube van he had been trailing for the past 10 minutes. The van that if he didn't stop, would take ten underage girls far away from home never to be seen again. He shifted his weight further back in an effort to increase stability. Grabbing his bow he fired two arrows, one at each back tire. The rear of the van dropped, skidding and leaving a trail of sparks. He holstered his weapon and sped up again, easily catching the disabled vehicle. Oliver climbed the back as the driver desperately attempted to keep going. He kept his balance, staying low as he moved towards the front. He punched through the driver side window in order to grab the frame and swing down, opening the door as he went. He threw the driver, who's partner had jumped out of the passenger's side as soon as Oliver hit the window, out onto the road. Guiding the decrepit van to as gentle a stop as he could he hit his comm link.

"Call the police, and an ambulance just to be safe. " Making sure to keep his head down, Oliver unlatched the door before gathering his abandoned bike. " I'm on my way back."

" So that's it? Diggle and I drove all the way over here for nothing?" Roy asked annoyed. " I thought I was supposed to help you."

"No one at the docks?" Felicity asked. "Did these guys seriously think they could get 10 girls into a cargo hold of a ship with the promise of modelling contracts? Even getting them into the van took a few funky cocktails."

" No back up, just a small boat. Real DIY operation." Dig explained.

" They just don't make criminal masterminds like they used to." She lamented. "See you guys when you get back here."

Just as Felicity finished email the precinct the exact location of the van, she heard a soft clink behind her. Turning in her chair she smiled as Oliver removed his hood and mask. "Starling PD is on the way to the pick up site." He nodded.

" Any sign of who sent them? That many kidnappings they must have had a client." He leaned against the desk arms crossed.

"Nothing so far. But if there is a client they are going to be very annoyed and probably try to get in touch. So I'll keep the shiny surveillance going for a few days just to see." She looked at her watch. " I know I'm not technically your assistant anymore , but If you were planning on sleeping at all tonight you should probably call it a night. You've got that lawyer thing at 9am.

"I'm fine." Oliver said shrugging. Felicity stared at him. That stare was her weapon and on Oliver it was more powerful than any arrow. "As soon as we debrief." He relented.

"Good. Because as much as I complained, it wasn't that bad of a job, and I wouldn't necessarily mind having it back." Felicity had managed to transfer back to the IT department in the weeks following Isobel Rochev's second, and more permanent death. Queen Consolidated had a new interim CEO and Oliver, along with his legal team, had scheduled a meeting with the board the following morning to discuss how the Queen heirs should be compensated.

" I should probably focus on getting myself employed first."

" Right. That and a place to live." Felicity added.

"I'm fine here." Oliver had been sleeping in the back up lair, which after the foundry was destroyed by Slade's army had become the main lair.

" And when they ask you tomorrow where you are staying?" She pestered. " You don't have enough to get your own place until the mansion sells."

" I'll tell them I'm staying with friends."

"What if they ask for an address?" Oliver went silent as he realized he hadn't thought that far ahead. Felicity grabbed a piece of paper and wrote quickly. She passed it to Oliver "Cheat sheet."

"1426 Waverley?" He asked as she grabbed her bag.

" My place. If anyone asks, you're staying with me. Better than trying to explain where this place is." Felicity started to make her way out just as Diggle and Roy returned " Let me know how it goes."

"What's on the paper?" John asked taking off his extra weapons and putting them back on the rack.

"The address of my new roommate."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N Thanks so much for the follows/ favourites and reviews! Hope this one keeps you feeling confident ;)

Spoilers: Specifically "Deathstroke" but be up to date before you read this.

Disclaimer: None of it is mine. CW and DC get all the fun bits.

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It felt very strange, signing in at the security desk for a building with his name emblazoned on the outside. However, Oliver did not currently hold any official position at Queen Consolidated and as such was victim to a newly heightened security protocol. Oliver, Laurel and the Queen family attorney representing Thea's interests all had to sign in and leave behind a piece of photo ID to be picked up when they returned their visitors badges.

Walking into his office and his meeting rooms, which weren't his anymore made him feel ashamed. His parents had worked their whole adult lives to secure this for him and now Oliver had to argue with men and women who knew Robert and Moira Queen so well why he should be given a second chance. Laurel squeezed his arm reassuringly

"Ollie, we've got this." He looked at her and nodded. The argument was solid, but people in power very rarely wanted to give it up. The board would not let him back in without a fight.

"Isobel Rochev got Mr Queen to sign over his power in the company by orchestrating a situation that would take all of his attention and emotionally distress him. He was not in a proper state of mind to be making those decisions." Laurel argued.

"We were all manipulated by Ms Rochev." Marc Stanford, the interim CEO agreed. "The board was unaware of her connection to Mr Wilson or of her vendetta against the Queen Family."

"Then why is this even an issue? It can't be very good for PR to have the only heir left of Queen Consolidated is on the street, penniless because a psychopath overthrew the company while his sister was kidnapped by a madman?" Marc looked from the young lawyer to Oliver.

" Because frankly Ms Lance, your client wasn't very good at his job." The middle aged man began. "Oliver was notoriously late if he bothered to show up at all. He left meetings early, Never read the reports he was supposed to and floundered on every tough decision that needed to be made. Our stock had already begun to fall before Ms Rochev approached us as proxy."

" I can do better." Oliver said.

" I know you can." Marc replied. "But the board isn't willing to risk the entire company on it. Not yet." One of the other board members passed Marc a file. "Shortly before Ms Rochev," He paused not quite sure how to finish the sentence. "She had decided to shut down your sister's nightclub." He slid the file across the table to the trio. " In there you'll find a new rental agreement, very hospitable terms, and a few terms and conditions." Oliver glanced at the forms before passing them to Laurel and Thea's lawyer. " Start small, get your footing. In time you'll be back here. They all stood as the former and current CEOs shook hands. "Worked for your father."

Once they were down in the lobby and no longer under scrutiny Oliver asked the obvious question. "So can we do it? Steve?"

"Thea won't object. I'm just supposed to make sure she gets her half of the proceeds from the sale of the house. Everything else she said was up to you." He offered excuses of having to get to another appointment and shook Laurel and Oliver's hands. The friends made their way towards a coffee shop to go over the documents.

"So are you all moved in? What's Felicity's place like?" Oliver gave Laurel a side eyed glance. "What?" He didn't say anything letting her put the pieces together. " So where are you actually staying." She asked quietly.

"Somewhere safe." He replied weighting his words so that she understood what that meant. Laurel scanned the document until her eyes hit something concerning.

" Well I hope you don't have a lot of stuff there and I really hope that Felicity's place isn't a studio."

"What are you talking about?" Oliver asked Laurel pulled out the pages of the Verdant contract and pointed at a paragraph.

"They've put in a breach of trust clause. If you are found to be knowingly deceiving the board in any way, they take Verdant and you forfeit your claim to QC." Oliver took the contract from her and read it again. "Lying about where you live would definitely be a part of that."

He sighed and took out his phone. He thumbed through his speed dial until Felicity's face showed up.

" Felicity? I'm still upstairs. You have time for a coffee break?"


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Someone asked me to clarify so I've gone back and amended the description. This story is going to be Olicity eventually. However, it will not be Anti-Laurel.

Disclaimer: Not mine, just borrowing the characters.

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"You're sure you're ok with this?" Oliver asked. "I can figure out another way."

"Nope. This is the best way. I mean, if you ditched your roommate after a single day that wouldn't exactly help the whole 'Oliver isn't a flakey playboy' thing we're trying to pull here." Felicity nodded before pausing. "Not that you have to pretend not to be flakey. Because you aren't. They just don't know that yet." She sighed. Oliver gave her a reassuring half smile. Laurel just observed. She was still getting used to the vibe of Oliver and Felicity's friendship. They appeared completely comfortable with each other, and yet skittish. It almost seemed like they were worried that one wrong move would blow the whole thing up.

"So what time are you done for the day?" She asked Felicity hoping to break the tension. " I can go make sure Oliver is packed and the guys can help him bring his stuff over."

"Five, well maybe say five-thirty so I can actually get home. I mean-"

"Five Thirty it is." Oliver cut her off. "Thanks." He and Laurel made their way to the front of the lobby while she started to slowly move back into the employees only section of the office.

Felicity waited until her friends had rounded the corner before picking up the pace and almost running back to the IT department. She dropped her purse on her chair, slowed her pace to a determined walk and made her way to the office down the hall.

"Carol? You have a minute?" She asked. A serious looking Hispanic woman glanced up for her computer monitor and observed the nervous young woman in front of her. Just when Felicity was about to give up on the whole thing and go sit back down, her new boss spoke.

"It's rarely a minute with you Ms Smoak. What can I do for you?"

"Well I know usually there is a 3 month probationary period where I'm not allowed to really take any days off without a doctor's note or something, but I'm really hoping you can over look that considering I have technically been a Queen Consolidated employee for 5 years."

"Are you trying to ask me for time off."

"Yes"

"When"

"Right now"

"No I mean when do you need it?"

"Right now, today, the rest of the day" Felicity bit her lip as Carol's expression grew more stern.

"Ms Smoak, when you reapplied for this position it was made perfectly clear to you that spotty attendance would no longer be tolerated."

"I understand, but-"

" Your, personal, relationship with Mr Queen does not buy you special privileges." Felicity wasn't sure exactly how she managed to not roll her eyes at the implication she had heard a million times since her random promotion the year before. It was probably because Carol as a boss was almost as terrifying as any criminal. Except with Carol, she didn't have her friends backing her up with bows and sniper rifles.

"I'm not," She decided not to try to explain and to stick with the facts. " I have had an issue come up at home that requires immediate attention and since I live alone, well for the next eight hours I live alone, there is no one else who can do it."

"What kind of situation?" Carol asked skeptically. "Flood, burglary, fire?"

"Asking someone to move in and them saying yes when you didn't think in a million years they would so you never bothered making room for their stuff and they arrive tonight." A second stare down commenced. "Have I said please yet? Because if I didn't I meant to." Carol smirked.

"This is your get out of jail free card Felicity. I hope it was worth it."

"Managing not to embarrass myself is always worth it. And rarely happens. Thank you." Felicity left quickly before her boss could change her mind. She had 8 hours.

The house wasn't dirty as much as it was messy. The impulsive side of her that lead to Felicity saying whatever was on her mind also lead to an impressive number of unfinished projects. She supposed her schedule didn't help that either. How was she supposed to dedicate herself to learning Spanish when she had to set phone reminders to make sure she ate. With some help from her expert Tetris skills, she managed to get her books and DVD's back on the shelves. The Laundry machine ran all day to get through the piles that had amassed in the hallway and the clean clothes, which had been living on the guest bed, were now back in the closet where they belonged. The whole process was so simple and made her feel so much better about her abilities to be a functioning adult that Felicity chastised herself for not doing it sooner.

The knock on the door jolted her out of her post cleaning haze. She opened it to find Oliver, John and Roy crowded onto her tiny porch. Diggle and Roy were each holding a handle of the green metal army chest while Oliver had his duffle bag over his shoulder and three bags of Big Belly Burger.

" I've been told if you aren't paying them, you feed the people who help you move." Oliver offered the bags to Felicity.

" Usually there is beer" Roy grumbled.

"Usually everyone is legal age." Diggle reminded him. Oliver arched an eyebrow in the youngest team member's direction. Roy rolled his eyes.

"So where's this going?" He asked Felicity.

" Oh! Um, up the stairs, second door on the left. the one without my stuff in it or a toilet." She cleared off some space on the dining table and dropped the food bags. Oliver stepped through the door slowly and looked around.

"It's nice." He offered. Felicity moved from the table nestled next to the staircase, through the living room back towards the kitchen.

" It has it's issues, not much different from the owner." She said returning with a stack of dishes topped with four cans of soda " But, it's home." He dropped his bag and took the four wobbly cans from the top of the stack. " Thanks" He placed them on the table. Felicity was starting to put the various meals on plates when he touched her shoulder to get her attention. When she turned to look up at him, Oliver had a million things he wanted to say, but settled on two words.

"Thank You."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I am so sorry this took so long. The muse left me and I'm trying to coax her back.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.

They settled into a routine quickly. Felicity would wake up and go to work at QC while Oliver attempted to sleep. When he did wake up, he would work out with Diggle or train Roy for a few hours. Most days he would catch up with Felicity after she got off work before heading to Verdant. He found that slipping back into managing the club was not as challenging as he had thought it would be. Thea had done a great job of making the place practically run itself. Some nights he stayed at the club until close, other nights he left the staff with instructions to call him if there was an emergency before leaving and heading to the off site lair.

Oliver still wasn't the best sleeper. Anything could set off his insomnia. Tonight it was the fact that it had been a very quiet week. He felt uneasy, like the other shoe was going to drop. He had gotten home about three in the morning, it was now five and he was reviewing police reports on his tablet. He wasn't sure what exactly he was looking for, something that seemed beyond the police's grasp. He finished the report and was about to check out something a little more frivolous when he heard cabinets opening and closing. Assuming Felicity was having just as much luck sleeping as he was, he put the tablet away and decided to head downstairs. Misery loves company after all.

He opened his door and stepped into the hallway. Felicity's room was right at the top of the stairs. Even in the dim morning he could see that her door was shut. A rush of tension filled him and he was now on alert. When Felicity's door was shut that meant she was either changing or sleeping. Either way, there was someone else in the kitchen. He reached into the second linen closet- the one that held enough weaponry for a small army- and pulled out a small knife. He palmed it and silently made his way down the stairs.

He hid himself against the wall next to the kitchen doorway. He peered around the corner to see a woman dressed in black, her red hair in a ponytail, searching through the lower cupboards. Oliver moved into position behind her, grabbing the intruder and holding the knife to her throat. "Don't move." He said.

"Who are you?" she asked panicking. "Please don't hurt me."

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"I'm, I, Please" She pleaded.

"Who sent you?" He growled.

"Oliver! Stop!" He heard Felicity as she barrelled into the room. "Stop! Let her go!" Oliver immediately dropped his stance and backed away from the scared girl as she ran towards Felicity.

"What the hell was that about and Who the hell is he?!" Felicity looked between the two of them.

"Lindsay, this is Oliver. He's staying with me until he gets back on his feet. Oliver, this is Lindsay, she's my friend, running buddy and not a criminal."

" I'm sorry, She didn't tell me-" Oliver mumbled.

"It's, well it's not fine but I think I know what happened." Lindsay said stiffly. " If it's all the same to you though Felicity I'm going to wait on the porch." She left quickly as the two of them stood there silently.

"Are you ok?" Oliver asked. She nodded. He finally noticed she was in her work out clothes, the ones she used to keep in the foundry for sparring.

"Are you?" He nodded back. "I'm sorry, I should have told you. Lindsay has the spare key in case I get ditzy and lock myself out. Sometimes when we go running she'll use it to wait inside until I'm ready. I just didn't think you'd be awake."

" I didn't know you ran." She smiled a little.

"Well, I have to keep up with the rest of you don't I?" He tried to smile back. " Anyways, I should go make sure she's ok." grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge. "Try to sleep ok?" He nodded as she left.

Outside, Lindsay paced on the porch. She jumped slightly when Felicity opened the door. Felicity closed it quietly and turned to face her friend. She passed Lindsay a purple water bottle.

"That's what I was looking for when your roommate went postal." She said annoyed.

" It was in the fridge." Felicity said. Lindsay started walking away and she followed. "I'm sorry."

"You should be, and you will be making it up to me with something spectacular." They waked in silence for a bit. "So how and when did that happen?"

"He moved in about three weeks ago. He's been going through some rough stuff lately. His Mom died, he lost his job, he needs to sell the house but, you know there isn't much of a market for mansions in a recession." Lindsay stopped suddenly and put her hand out to stop Felicity as well.

"His name is Oliver?"

"Yes." Felicity said skeptically.

"As in Oliver Queen?" Felicity's silence made Lindsay assume she was correct. " As in your former boss you are nursing a crush on?"

" I do not have a crush on Oliver! He's a friend."

" If he's just a friend why have you been living with him for three weeks and I find out like that?"

"It- I- We should start running." Felicity stuttered and began to jog.

"We're not done talking about this Smoak!" Lindsay called.

"Are you coming?" Felicity picked up her pace and was almost out of sight when Lindsay sighed and began to run.


End file.
